Mayor Bynum, FEMA Officials Celebrate Tulsa’s Promotion to Class 1 in the National Flood Insurance Program

3/10/2022

Mayor G.T. Bynum welcomed Federal Emergency Management Agency officials to Tulsa today for a ceremony celebrating Tulsa’s promotion to Class 1 in the National Flood Insurance Program. FEMA Region 6 Administrator Tony Robinson and National Flood Insurance Program Senior Executive David Maurstad joined Mayor Bynum for the event at the stormwater detention facility at Centennial Center in Veterans Park, 1028 E. Sixth St. In the photo attached with this release, Tony Robinson is on the left side of the Mayor, and David Maurstad is on the right side.

“As we celebrate Tulsa’s success in achieving this Class 1 rating, we are reaping the benefits of literally three decades of progress moving up through the Community Rating System,” Mayor G.T. Bynum said. “Since 1991 when Tulsa joined the CRS in the National Flood Insurance Program, each accomplishment has added more stability to Tulsa’s stormwater management program, building on the foundation that we set in the mid-1980s. In 2022, we thank everyone who has contributed to this effort.”

Tulsa has moved up from a Class 2 rating to a Class 1, the highest possible ranking in the National Flood Insurance Program’s Community Rating System. With Tulsa’s Class 1 rating, National Flood Insurance Program policies issued or renewed in the city limits are eligible for a 45-percent discount in premium costs starting April 1.

The Community Rating System is a voluntary program for flood loss reduction in which communities that go beyond the minimum floodplain management requirements earn flood insurance discounts for residents. The Federal Emergency Management Agency in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security administers the program.

Tulsa’s Class 1 rating for the National Flood Insurance Program corresponds to the city’s No. 1 ranking for fire protection by the Insurance Services Office, also administered by FEMA. Tulsa achieved the No. 1 ISO rating citywide in 2019.

For the National Flood Insurance Program, Tulsa is one of only two communities nationwide to achieve a Class 1 rating, out of more than 1,500 cities and counties that participate in the voluntary Community Rating System. Only one other city, Roseville, Calif., has achieved a Class 1 rating. The scale ranges from Class 10, with no flood insurance discount, to Class 1, with a 45-percent discount.

Activities in the Community Rating System are organized in four main categories: public information, mapping and regulations, flood damage reduction, and warning and response. Stormwater management, drainage system maintenance and floodplain development regulations all contribute to Tulsa’s Class 1 rating, which stays in effect for a three-year cycle.

City of Tulsa Engineering Services, Streets and Stormwater, Development Services and Parks, Culture and Recreation departments, along with the Tulsa Area Emergency Management Agency, work together to increase Tulsa’s safety from floods. In addition, the Stormwater Drainage Hazard Mitigation Advisory Board and the Infrastructure Development Advisory Board provide insight from community volunteers with professional expertise.